Page 68 of Blood and Bone

Ari watched both dragons turn their lips up in a snarl. If he hadn’t known they were from different clans, he would have guessed them to be twins since they looked so much like each other, even possessing the same mannerisms.

“We know that you’ve done business with their clan in the past.”

“They do not wish to do business with us anymore,” Invictus said.

“Actually, they said that has changed now that Colt Wilkins is in jail,” Ari said. “He’s headed to prison for a very long time. The tribe would like to give you access to the jade you need and if you help us with a problem we’re dealing with, we’d tell them of your cooperation to aid in that process.”

For the first time since they’d been standing there, the two dragons exchanged a look with each other and then turned back to them. Invictus gave a slight nod. “What do you wish from us?”

“We’d like to ask for your help. I know that it would go a long way to prove that you want to be good outstanding members of the larger shifter world,” Eoghan said.

The two men exchanged a glance again and for the first time, Ari detected a smirk on Severin’s face. When he turned back, he was stone-faced and frowning again.

“We have no desire to live up to anyone’s definition of an outstanding member of the larger shifter world,” Severin said. “We have been shunned by all shifters for millennia and that will not change just because of the I.S.R. and meddlesome grizzlies.”

“Don’t you want to be a part of the shifter community?” Eoghan asked.

“Community is a myth when it comes to dragons,” Invictus said. “Our ancestors believed that we were part of a larger community, but we were deceived by those we trusted before being hunted nearly to extinction. We live in our isolated caves on top of a mountain for reasons you cannot begin to fathom, nor will we now try to describe it for you. We want to purchase jade from the grizzlies and that is the only reason we’ve had contact with anyone in their tribe. But do not mistake us being here for the desire to be part of a community or to be friendly. Your chief deputy Priest said that you needed our help and in exchange she’d intervene with the Tahoe grizzlies to get us access to the jade. Tell us why we’re here. What do you need us to do?”

Before either of them could answer, a shadow darkened the sky overhead, obliterating the moon. They all looked up. Ari’s heart jumped into his throat when he caught sight of the massive figure of a black winged beast, turning in lazy circles overhead. He was about to open his mouth to say something to Eoghan when another black shape appeared in the corner of his eye. In a heartbeat, he was distracted when yet a third shape appeared.

Invictus made a sound deep in his throat not unlike a bellow and suddenly shifted into a massive, winged beast. Fear lanced through Ari as he watched a dragon appear where a man had been standing only moments ago. Before he could blink, a second dragon stood where Severin had been.

Chapter Nineteen

“Eoghan!” Ari screamed as Invictus opened one massive claw and grabbed his lover by the back of his jacket. As he looked on in horror, the iridescent, black dragon rose into the air, flapped his huge wings, and vanished over the rooftop of the abandoned restaurant with his beloved dangling from his claws. “Eoghan!” Ari shouted, feeling tears prickling behind his eyes as the man he loved was carried away. He turned to look at the second beast, noting for the first time, just how large he really was.

The dragon had to be over eight feet tall when fully shifted but it was the way he ducked his head and stared into Ari’s eyes that made him tremble like crazy. “Why did he take Eoghan?” Ari screamed at the dragon. Severin’s orange eyes stared back at him for only a second before glancing up in the direction Invictus had gone. Ari felt nauseous as he thought of Eoghan’s plight. He’d never felt as helpless as he did at this very moment. “Where is my partner?”

The dragon turned back to him and then blinked, shuttering his massive orange eyes and then looked up, drawing Ari’s attention to the rapidly lightening skies above as dawn was beginning to break. His heart nearly stopped beating as he spotted one of the beasts which had been turning lazy circles above them just moments before. He wasn’t circling anymore. The thing seemed to be in a dive…coming right toward them at a fantastic speed.

Ari had just enough time to realize what was happening before Severin opened his huge claws and grabbed him, exactly the way Invictus had with Eoghan. At a speed hecouldn’t begin to fathom, they were airborne, flying over trees, buildings, roads, and houses at a breathtaking pace. He dangled from the dragon’s claws, both terrified that he’d be dropped but at the same time, embracing the adrenaline that roared through his veins as they soared through the air.

Wind whipped at Ari’s face and pummeled his body, making him feel icy fingers all the way through his clothes. He cried out, asking Severin where in the world he was being taken. He was comforted only in the hope that it was the same place Invictus was taking Eoghan. He prayed they’d be reunited soon and that wherever it was, wasn’t much farther as his body began to shake from the cold. They were climbing in altitude and he had to open his mouth to pop his ears more than once.

Ari had no idea how much time had passed when he spotted the snow-covered peaks of Mount Shasta. Even in late spring, the more than fourteen-thousand-foot dormant volcano had snow at the very top. The sight of trees far below was breathtaking as was the speed at which they traveled. In the distance, he caught a glimpse of a large body of water. It had to be Lake Shasta. Clearly the dragons were taking them back home. The way the early morning sun cast long shadows over the glistening snow far below was a sight Ari knew he’d never see again. He was awed by the beauty of the mountain from this vantage point. He hung from the dragon’s claws, legs moving to and fro as he dangled there.

When he felt the dragon slow his flight, he prayed they were close to their destination because he could feel the early signs of hypothermia setting in. Sure enough, the beast set him down on a rock ledge at the entrance to a cave moments later. The moment Severin released him, Ari fell to all fours, shaking violently. He’d never been so cold in his entire life. When he looked up, Severin stood before him as a man, naked as theday he was born. He came closer and bent, holding out his hand.

“Come inside. You’re freezing.”

Ari’s teeth chattered as he clumsily lifted his hand and grasped the dragon’s huge one. In seconds he was standing on shaky legs but feeling dizzy, praying he wasn’t going to collapse. Severin picked up something from a basket at the mouth of the cave and a moment later, Ari was wrapped with a thick fur and the dragon shifter was guiding him into the cave. If he’d been able to speak, he would have asked where Invictus had taken Eoghan but before he could, he spotted his lover sitting hunched over, in the corner of the room.

Ari walked past piles of bones which resembled what was left of human beings, shivering as he stared at the bleached white piles. Even though he was curious about them, he instinctively knew he didn’t have enough control over his tongue to ask. He noted that Eoghan was wrapped in a similar fur to the one Severin had given him. He was seated on some sort of long couch in front of a blazing fire. Relief washed through Ari, never so grateful to see anyone in his life. Eoghan looked up and smiled as soon as he saw him. He gamely tried to rise to his feet but sat back down hard, clearly afflicted with the same shaking limbs as he had. Ari sat beside him on a remarkably soft couch, then reached for Eoghan’s hand.

Eoghan’s ice cold fingers instantly closed around his own as he laid his head on his shoulder. Ari could hear Eoghan’s teeth chattering, feel the tremors racking his body. The fire warmed him quickly and before he knew it, the room felt almost too hot. He let the fur slip from his back, but Eoghan kept his tightly wrapped around him. At home in Eoghan’s bed, Ari was the one always kicking off the covers, and Eoghan was always the one snuggling under three blankets. More than once, Ari had teased him about the way he wrapped himself uplike a burrito. Ari smiled at the thought of it, wishing he could pull him into his arms and hold his beautiful body against his right now.

“What the f-fuck was that all about?” Eoghan stammered, turning to him. His teeth clacked together.

Ari smiled at him. “That’s what I’d like to know.” He stood, testing his legs and finding them sturdy enough to hold him. He glanced around the room, finding it empty. About twenty-five feet away, sunlight poured into the room from the entrance of the cave, lighting the space up. The vast room seemed to have been honed from black rock. His gaze was drawn to the darkness on the opposite side of the cave when he detected movement. Invictus and Severin emerged from the shadows dressed in sweats and muscle tees. In the glow from the firelight, Ari noticed just how big the dragons were, towering above him by more than a few inches. Somehow in the darkened parking lot of the shuttered restaurant, they’d seemed…smaller. Maybe now that he knew them in shifted form, he had a different perspective.

“Are you warm enough?” Invictus asked, checking the fireplace before looking back. “I can add more wood.”

“I’m good,” Ari replied. “Eoghan?”

Eoghan nodded. “I should be okay in a minute.”

Severin had been doing something in what appeared to be a kitchen area but now he came to stand beside Invictus, folding his arms across his chest. Ari noticed how his biceps and pecs bulged with muscle, straining at the tight-fitting T-shirt. His thigh muscles were well defined too. If he hadn’t been so much in love with Eoghan, he probably would have studied the bulge in the sweatpants much more closely.

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